Jason Robinson: Get in their faces and England can rattle New Zealand

While I cannot see England beating New Zealand tomorrow, this is a fantastic opportunity for the players to prove they can be part of the World Cup squad next year.

There are certain times in your career that define you and this is one of them — playing the All Blacks on their own soil.

The England players will be appearing on the big stage and have to deliver against an All Blacks team that does make mistakes if you get in their faces and compete strongly at the breakdown. I would be jumping out of my skin, desperate to play if I was in this England team.

Stuart Lancaster and his management team will learn so much about the squad from this three-Test series and we need to know if the players can handle the pressure and be relied upon to deliver in the key moments. We will have a very clear idea of exactly where the squad are by the end of the tour.

One of the biggest tests for the players will be in their heads and while we haven’t done badly against the All Blacks in recent matches at Twickenham, this is taking things to a different level. England won’t be playing their strongest XV and have not had that long together to prepare for playing the No1 team in the world so everything has to be perfect. There are new combinations like Kyle Eastmond and Manu Tuilagi in the centre while there will be masses of pressure on Freddie Burns at No10 because he hasn’t had a great season.

I thought Danny Cipriani would get a chance. For various reasons, he has had lots of stick in the past but this season he has got his head down and been the key to Sale’s form. It’s great to have him back on the scene and he will get some game time. Both will want to show Lancaster they can kick their points, control a game while defensively dealing with the big units that will be coming their way. There are no hiding places and it’s about taking your chance.

Kyle isn’t the biggest player but he is quick, strong and very unpredictable. He has played in a number of positions, including scrum-half in rugby league, can create something out of nothing and is used to putting players into gaps which is what he will try to do with Manu. This is a step up for Kyle and retaining the ball will be crucial because the All Blacks have so many great runners who will punish you.

I know many people believe that the way the Premiership season ended and the tour was arranged was ridiculous but for those players who are desperate to show what they can do, this is their chance. If this is their only opportunity on tour — the Saracens and Northampton guys are available for the Second Test — they have to make the coaches sit up and take notice.

While you have to respect New Zealand, you cannot fear them. It’s a very difficult place to go and get a victory and that is why our 15-13 win over the All Blacks in Wellington in 2003 was so important in the build up to the World Cup. It gave us the confidence that we could take on any team, any time, any place and anywhere. That win in New Zealand — when we were down to 13 men after two yellow cards — followed by victory in Australia on the same tour was the springboard for our World Cup success.

In New Zealand, the whole country is obsessed with rugby union; everyone has an opinion whether it’s the taxi driver or someone who cleans your hotel room. They are more than happy to tell you what they think and who will do what and when! I can see a lot of good coming out of the match for England and it will prove we do have real strength in depth.